Jack Tatum Documentary
Donation protected
JACK TATUM'S JOURNEY
Join us in helping create the first phase of a documentary on the life of the Oakland Raider, Ohio State Buckeye, and Passaic NJ High School star alumni Jack Tatum. The film’s purpose is to provide the public with an in-depth and very personal look into the life and legacy of John David Tatum. The film will be told by those who knew and played with this gifted athlete and humble man. His career and life have been sensationalized by those who did not know him.
This retrospective, the first done on Jack, will provide context to the public persona, private insights, athletic excellence, and the life that he led. This project is a labor of love, telling a much more complete story of Jack, whose name has been vilified in a game that glorified his aggressiveness until unintended consequences resulted in injury.
BACKGROUND
Jack Tatum died in July 2010 while living in Oakland. One of the elements that stimulated my interest in telling the first complete full story of the life and times of Jack Tatum, were video recordings, made at Jack’s repass in Oakland. We captured many of his Ohio States teammates reminiscing about times with this hard-hitting defensive back. Fellow players shared some hilarious and very personal moments concerning their involvement with their colleague. Their recollection of the privately introverted Tatum was in stark contrast to the public menacing and non-repentant image that had been portrayed to the public.
In addition to chronicling Jack’s life, we will be highlighting changes in the game of football during Jack’s career that impacted him personally. This includes:
• How the arrival of Jack’s OSU class of 1967 took a good Ohio State football legacy and led it into an elite program that lives on today. It included 10 players who obtained All-American status during their three-year athletic careers.
• A look at the sports and social environment that allowed Football to surpass Baseball as America’s favorite sport.
• The commercialization of the NFL and the subsequent TV ratings boom during the 1970s. To enhance their consumer appeal, every NFL rule change was made to accommodate the offense and increase scoring in games.
• Jack’s specific recommendations concerning improving player safety changes in his 1980 bestselling book, “They Call Me Assassin.” The NFL is now implementing many of his player well-being concepts more than 35 years after he presented them.
USAGE OF FUNDS/PRODUCTION TEAM
We want to complete the first phase of this project, by creating a 4-5-minute Project Presentation that defines the film's concept. This will include interviews, historical footage and the editing of the film into a coherent story. The production will be headed by noted film storyteller Doug Harris, who has created sports documentaries that include: 1. Basketball Guru: The Pete Newell Story about the legendary U.C. Berkeley coach, 2. OUT, The Glenn Burke Story, an Emmy nominated documentary about MLB’s first openly gay player, and 3. BOUNCE: The Don Barksdale Story, an award-winning film about the Hall of Fame basketball pioneer who was the USA’s first Black Olympic basketball player and the NBA's first black All-Star.
ROBERT A. BROWN EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER – Robert met Jack while attending Ohio State and moved to Oakland in 1972, maintaining a lifelong friendship with Jack until his passing. He utilized his background in Marketing and Advertising to launch a sports marketing company in Oakland, named Sportsvisions, for more than 17 years. Recently, Robert has moved his career toward writing, in the area of culture, sports and music, and recently authored his first book. Jack’s wife Denise and children have given Robert their blessings and approval to move forward with this undertaking to tell their husband and father’s story.
TIMING
It is our goal to start shooting on March 27, 2019. Our filming schedule includes the aforementioned OSU teammates in Columbus, OH, and Oakland, CA. There will be interviews with Raiders John Madden, John Gruden, Ray Chester, George Atkinson, Cliff Branch, wife Denise Tatum and others. This phase will culminate in a visit to his hometown of Passaic NJ to connect with his high school teammates Frank Barber, Art Harris, Jerry Chambers plus family and friends. The goal is simple: to have the artistic and historical legacy of this great man conveyed by those with first-hand knowledge of his life and times.
The 4-5-minute Project Presentation will provide the foundation that the ultimate documentary will be built upon. This visual depiction will either allow us to secure financing or pitch to a larger studio our concept and perspective on the life of John David Tatum. It is important that this final documentary is a holistic view of his career and life versus a sensational “hit piece”, fixated on the unfortunate Darryl Stingley incident and the book “They Call Me Assassin.” Although we are going to acknowledge both events, they will be ancillary parts of the final product and not the feature.
WHO SHOULD CONTRIBUTE
We are specifically asking those individuals who had the opportunity to know Jack personally, watched his athletic excellence or fan to contribute. Our mission is making the story on Jack be tangible versus hearsay. Detailing how a celebrated high school, college and All-Pro NFL legacy can become improperly defined in an instant.
WHAT WE HAVE DONE TO DATE
A tremendous amount of research has been done on the life of Jack. We’ve collected actual high school game footage, personal memorabilia, and an extensive compilation of articles from the Ohio State Lantern and Columbus OH Dispatch newspapers. In addition, Ohio State and Oakland Raiders opened their archives to help one of their most acclaimed athletes.
Join us in helping create the first phase of a documentary on the life of the Oakland Raider, Ohio State Buckeye, and Passaic NJ High School star alumni Jack Tatum. The film’s purpose is to provide the public with an in-depth and very personal look into the life and legacy of John David Tatum. The film will be told by those who knew and played with this gifted athlete and humble man. His career and life have been sensationalized by those who did not know him.
This retrospective, the first done on Jack, will provide context to the public persona, private insights, athletic excellence, and the life that he led. This project is a labor of love, telling a much more complete story of Jack, whose name has been vilified in a game that glorified his aggressiveness until unintended consequences resulted in injury.
BACKGROUND
Jack Tatum died in July 2010 while living in Oakland. One of the elements that stimulated my interest in telling the first complete full story of the life and times of Jack Tatum, were video recordings, made at Jack’s repass in Oakland. We captured many of his Ohio States teammates reminiscing about times with this hard-hitting defensive back. Fellow players shared some hilarious and very personal moments concerning their involvement with their colleague. Their recollection of the privately introverted Tatum was in stark contrast to the public menacing and non-repentant image that had been portrayed to the public.
In addition to chronicling Jack’s life, we will be highlighting changes in the game of football during Jack’s career that impacted him personally. This includes:
• How the arrival of Jack’s OSU class of 1967 took a good Ohio State football legacy and led it into an elite program that lives on today. It included 10 players who obtained All-American status during their three-year athletic careers.
• A look at the sports and social environment that allowed Football to surpass Baseball as America’s favorite sport.
• The commercialization of the NFL and the subsequent TV ratings boom during the 1970s. To enhance their consumer appeal, every NFL rule change was made to accommodate the offense and increase scoring in games.
• Jack’s specific recommendations concerning improving player safety changes in his 1980 bestselling book, “They Call Me Assassin.” The NFL is now implementing many of his player well-being concepts more than 35 years after he presented them.
USAGE OF FUNDS/PRODUCTION TEAM
We want to complete the first phase of this project, by creating a 4-5-minute Project Presentation that defines the film's concept. This will include interviews, historical footage and the editing of the film into a coherent story. The production will be headed by noted film storyteller Doug Harris, who has created sports documentaries that include: 1. Basketball Guru: The Pete Newell Story about the legendary U.C. Berkeley coach, 2. OUT, The Glenn Burke Story, an Emmy nominated documentary about MLB’s first openly gay player, and 3. BOUNCE: The Don Barksdale Story, an award-winning film about the Hall of Fame basketball pioneer who was the USA’s first Black Olympic basketball player and the NBA's first black All-Star.
ROBERT A. BROWN EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER – Robert met Jack while attending Ohio State and moved to Oakland in 1972, maintaining a lifelong friendship with Jack until his passing. He utilized his background in Marketing and Advertising to launch a sports marketing company in Oakland, named Sportsvisions, for more than 17 years. Recently, Robert has moved his career toward writing, in the area of culture, sports and music, and recently authored his first book. Jack’s wife Denise and children have given Robert their blessings and approval to move forward with this undertaking to tell their husband and father’s story.
TIMING
It is our goal to start shooting on March 27, 2019. Our filming schedule includes the aforementioned OSU teammates in Columbus, OH, and Oakland, CA. There will be interviews with Raiders John Madden, John Gruden, Ray Chester, George Atkinson, Cliff Branch, wife Denise Tatum and others. This phase will culminate in a visit to his hometown of Passaic NJ to connect with his high school teammates Frank Barber, Art Harris, Jerry Chambers plus family and friends. The goal is simple: to have the artistic and historical legacy of this great man conveyed by those with first-hand knowledge of his life and times.
The 4-5-minute Project Presentation will provide the foundation that the ultimate documentary will be built upon. This visual depiction will either allow us to secure financing or pitch to a larger studio our concept and perspective on the life of John David Tatum. It is important that this final documentary is a holistic view of his career and life versus a sensational “hit piece”, fixated on the unfortunate Darryl Stingley incident and the book “They Call Me Assassin.” Although we are going to acknowledge both events, they will be ancillary parts of the final product and not the feature.
WHO SHOULD CONTRIBUTE
We are specifically asking those individuals who had the opportunity to know Jack personally, watched his athletic excellence or fan to contribute. Our mission is making the story on Jack be tangible versus hearsay. Detailing how a celebrated high school, college and All-Pro NFL legacy can become improperly defined in an instant.
WHAT WE HAVE DONE TO DATE
A tremendous amount of research has been done on the life of Jack. We’ve collected actual high school game footage, personal memorabilia, and an extensive compilation of articles from the Ohio State Lantern and Columbus OH Dispatch newspapers. In addition, Ohio State and Oakland Raiders opened their archives to help one of their most acclaimed athletes.
Organizer
Robert Brown
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA